The Prophet Mohammed and I share a birthday, a fact I had not learned until arriving in Morocco. Thus it was particularly interesting to see how birthdays, including Mohammed's, are celebrated in Moroccan tradition.
I awoke to delicious smells wafting throughout my room. Breakfast consisted of spongy Moroccan pancakes, doused in the maple syrup I had brought as a gift and rolled up for easier handling. We mainly eat with our right hand here, as Muslims consider the left dirty. We also had crescent shaped cookies, popular on Mohammed's birthday.
I went for a birthday jog along Rabat's new boardwalk. The sun was shining so brightly and the Kasbah looked beautiful against the blue water. Rabat's tram system is also brand new and it frequently passed by, traveling over the bridge to Salé. The scene looked like something out of the future.
Families gather from all over to celebrate the holiday so I spent the afternoon at my cousins' house. Ashton, whom I've only known for a week, told me that she had heard about a free concert in a park. She ran me through the medina, first exploring shops selling beautiful paintings, scarves, and leather and then stopping to buy cookies that she said we would bring back for the family. Finally, we emerged from the packed medina streets and crossed the street to the park. "Look, it's Jackie and Vemo," I said. I spotted two fellow MOJers and we went up to them, but no one said anything; they all just smiled and Ashton said "Surprise!" Soon more friends arrived, cake in hand. Ashton had organized nine of the twelve journalism students to get together for my birthday! Eboni's host brother and some of his friends came along and walked us over to Hassan Tower, Rabat's most famous monument. We sat in a circle on the grass between the tower and the water. They sang happy birthday in Arabic and English and we sat, talked, and enjoyed cookies and cake while the sun set. It was very special!
Later, Ashton and I returned to her home to celebrate another birthday, Mohammed's. On our way there people I had never met, but were somehow related to, or friends of, my host family stopped me in the street, greeting me with a kiss on both cheeks, and wished me a happy birthday and a happy Mawlid. When we arrived at Ashton's home we found our whole family gathered there and we all enjoyed a meal together. There was lots of laughter and I really felt like a part of the family.
When my host mother and I returned home she gave me a beautiful necklace for my birthday! It was so sweet and touching! What a special day it was!
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Tomorrow I officially begin school and so my posts will probably become less frequent and more thematic.
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